Old
farmer Isaac Barnes now moved about with hunched shoulders. He had been laboring
for the past fifty years on his family’s ten acres just outside of Cope,
Indiana. His pale face, like his fields between crops, displayed furrows of
wrinkles. Islands of black spots mapped his facial skin surface from working too
many years in the open fields under the blazing Midwestern sun. Like himself,
his farmhouse, barns, and tractors were worn out, the annual crop productions
were much less than when he and the farm were at their prime. That was such a
long time ago.

老农艾萨克·巴恩斯驼着背。他在印第安纳州科普市的那十亩田地辛勤劳作了五十年。

他那苍白的面孔满是褶皱，就跟田埂间的空地一样，一隆一隆的。黑点像海上的岛

屿一样点缀着他脸上的皮肤，这是在美国中西部那毒辣的太阳下工作而晒出来的。

他跟他的房舍、谷仓还有拖拉机一样，都已经被岁月消磨得不像样子了，他一年的

收成也不像他和他的农场风头正劲时那样多了。那已经是很久以前的事了。

This
day Isaac did what he had always done. Although plumb tired and with all the
aches and pains from farming over a lifetime, Isaac undertook what he did every
late spring before it relented to autumn. Like the passing seasons, the farmer
repeated his own annual cycle of change. He bought new seeds to plant the
farm’s pumpkin patch.

这一天，艾萨克照旧干完农活。不顾疲劳和耕田一辈子所带来的痛楚，艾萨克还是完成了他在春

耕和秋收之间这段时间该做的农活。就像过去的时节一样，这个农民重复着一年又一年的循环。

他买了新种，在他农场的南瓜田里把它们播了下去。

It was only five years ago since his friend, Pete Jensen, closed
Jensen’s Farm Supply & Seed at Martinville, the larger town just west of
Cope, situated along the IN-37. Now Isaac had to drive his old pickup truck up
north, taking the interstate up to Indianapolis where Home Depot had a nice
array of seeds. He didn’t like coming into the big city, some thirty-five
miles away from Cope. Having spent life in relative isolation as a farmer,
traffic congestion and large crowds made him uncomfortable. After picking up
farm supplies and the seeds, although cheaper here at the discount box store, he
wouldn’t come back for another couple months until it was necessary. Making an
occasional run up to the city did help cut cost to keep the farm operating.

Isaac
returned this time of year because he had become accustomed to the quality
pumpkins seeds sold at Home Depot. They always delivered a decent crop of plump,
well-formed pumpkins that made great pies, a tidy little profit, and provided a
surplus that he donated to local charities. It was good pumpkin. Isaac Barnes
was an expert in judging the quality of produce. He had to be as a farmer.

艾萨克这次进城是因为他已经喜欢上了“家用物资补给站”里那些高质量的南瓜种子。这些种子总

是能带来好收成，那些饱满可口的南瓜可以做成好吃的南瓜派，这能为他赚点小钱，他还能把多余

的南瓜捐给当地的慈善机构。真是不错的南瓜啊。艾萨克·巴恩斯是个鉴定农产品好坏的专家。作为一

位农民，这是必须的。

As
he picked out a couple packets, he noticed that one had extra writing scribbled
on the back, just under the p

rinted directions for planting. It seemed somebody
had written a note to the future purchaser of that packet. It read,

他选了几包种子，却发现其中一包的包装背面写着额外的信息，就在种植指南下面。那些字好像

是特地为买家写的。他读道，

“Congrats. You hold the packet with a special seed. You will be
surprised. But plant, only if you dare.”

“恭喜你。你手里的是包特别的种子。它们会让你大吃一惊的。如果你不是个胆小鬼就种下这些种子吧。”

That
sounded odd, but bored from decades of seasonal compulsory routine to till and
harvest the fields, Isaac was in the mood for some adventure. But then his
practical side spoke to him.

听起来怪邪乎的。过了几十年平白无奇务农日子的艾萨克却来了冒险的兴趣。但是他那保守的思

想仿佛对他说。

This
is silly, this must have been written by some mischievous kid.

别犯蠢，这肯定是某些淘气的孩子写上的。

Isaac
was about to place it back on the shelf and fetch another packet. The one with
the extra message might have been tampered with.

艾萨克正打算把它放回架子另换一包。这包带着额外信息的种子可能就这么被换掉了。

Then
his more adventurous intervened with,

不过他的冒险精神又开始怂恿他，

But
what if there really is something special in this here packet? Well, there’s
only way to find out, ain’t there? Besides, hey, what harm can there be?
It’s only $1.99 a pack.

可如果这包种子真的有什么特别之处呢？检验真理的唯一法则只有一个，对不？话说回来，即使

没什么特别的结果也无伤大雅啊。毕竟一包只卖1.99美元。

By
now his curiosity had been piqued. So he purchased the item, along with another
two dozen packs that would be required for the plot of land, close to the back
of the farmhouse, where he, and generations before, had always planted the
annual pumpkin patch. The pent up scarecrow in the barn awaited its annual
liberty pass, to once more be set free, standing guard in the fields under open
skies.

现在他的好奇心占了上风。所以他买了那包种子，并把它和一些其它种子放在一起，盘算着如何

种他屋后的那片菜地。每年他都在那片地里种南瓜。他那谷仓里的稻草人等待着再次上任的机

会，再一次在开阔的天空下站岗并体验一个稻草人的自由。

After tilling the soil, he was ready to plant the seeds. Isaac had
separated the packet with the unusual writing from the others and saved it for
last to plant it contents. He opened the paper pocket and poured the seeds on a
chipped plate in his paint-peeling, country kitchen. At this point in Isaac’s
life, he lived alone. His wife Dorothy had gotten “the cancer” and passed on
a few years ago. She was buried under the big oak tree on the side of the barn.
His two girls had grown up, married, and abandoned the farm for city life.

耕地之后，他准备好播种了。艾萨克把那包与众不同的种子留在最后耕种。他打开了那个纸包，

走到他那油漆剥落的厨房里，然后把种子倒在一个带豁口的盘子上。艾萨克已经孤独地生活好几

年了，他的老婆多萝西在前几年因癌症离世了。她被埋在谷仓边的一棵橡树下。他的两个女儿早已

长大成人并嫁做人妇，放弃了农场生活奔向了城市。

Closely
inspecting the contents for anything peculiar, the Isaac was not disappointed.
For among all the normal looking seeds, there was one that appeared much larger.

仔细检查那些种子之后，艾萨克挺满意的。因为那些种子看起来不错，其中有一颗要比其他种子

大一点。

Could
it be? This one is abnormally big for its kind. I wonder.... I’ll plant this
in a special container instead of with the rest of the seeds in the field. That
way I can observe how it does. Then I’ll place the pot with it outside along
with the rest in the ground, once I got it going good, so it can get the same
sun and watering.

这就是那个与众不同的种子吧？这颗明显要比正常的种子大一些。我琢磨……我要把这颗种在一

个特别的盆里，这样我就不会跟别的种子搞混了。然后我把它埋到外面，这样可以和其它种子享受

一样的阳光和灌溉。

The
rest of the normal size seeds in the packet he planted in the field along with
the other seeds.

于是他就把除了那颗大种子之外的种子也和其它种子种在了一起。

A
week or so passed and the seedlings were sprouting, including the special one
planted within a large ten-gallon vinyl pot. Its leaves and vines looked like
any other pumpkin plant. Soon flowers were withering, giving way to new bulbous
growth that would be the pumpkins. The growths grew at the ordinary rate and
size. Weeks later, Isaac decided to move the potted plant outside. He removed it
from the container and planted it with the others in the field. His expectation
that it would produce exceptional size fruit had increased as the new planting
flourished with his special attention and care.

大概一周之后，那些种子发芽了，也包括那颗被种在一个十加仑大的聚乙烯盆子里的大种子。它

的叶子和瓜秧和其它种子没什么不同。不久之后南瓜花都枯萎了，那些新生的球状突起不久之后

就会变成南瓜。南瓜们静静地生长，体积也没什么特别。又过了几周，艾萨克决定把它从盆子里

取出来，也和其它南瓜一样种到菜地里。他觉得这棵瓜秧会结出更大的南瓜只是因为他的对它的

照料更精心罢了。

Isaac
enjoyed waiting with excitement as the pumpkins started their period of growth
in size. However, disappointedly, the plant that had sprouted from within the
pot produced the same size pulpy fruit as the rest of the field.

艾萨克兴奋地享受着等待的时光。那些南瓜开始长大了。然而令他失望的是，那个“大种子”却只结

出了和田里其他南瓜一样大的果。

Well,
I figured so anyhow, he
consoled himself. Was fun, however, hoping all this time for something
special to show itself. But nothing loss; at least got me some regular pumpkins
growing outta

that seed.

得了，我看也就这样了，他想。不过这吊着人胃口的期待还挺有意思的。我也没损失什么，至少那颗大种子结出的南

瓜们还生得正常。

Busy
with more important farming chores like riding the tractor to get the fields
ready for the winter frost, Isaac forgot about the patch, knowing that the
pumpkins were well on their way to mature size and didn’t need any added care
for now. The crop would be harvested before Halloween and through Thanksgiving.

是他开始农忙的时候了。他开着拖拉机开始整地，为冬霜期做准备。在确定菜地里的南瓜生长健

康不需要照料后，艾萨克就完全把它们忘在脑后了。他要做的只是在感恩节之后、万圣节之前这

段时间里逐渐把它们收获就是了。

When
it was time again to inspect the growing crop, Isaac noticed that, among the
scattering of orange globes, there was a huge one that stood out among
the others. And it had the perfect shape for the classic form of a Halloween
Jack O’ Lantern. At this point, the others were about the size of a
volleyball, whereas this spectacular specimen was as voluminous as a huge beach
ball. Old man Isaac Barnes was really excited now. The seeds in that area of the
field had come from the same packet that the large seed was in!

当他又一次去查看南瓜生长情况的时候，艾萨克发现在那些遍地都是的橙色球体中有一颗特别巨

大的。而且它的形状恰好可以来做万圣节的南瓜灯。其它南瓜大概只有排球大小，而那颗大南瓜却足有沙滩球那么大。老

家伙艾萨卡·巴恩斯非常兴奋。因为那片产出这个大南瓜的地方正是他当时播下那包特别的南瓜种子的地方！

Could it really be? The big seed was the wrong one. Could be that
something special could come from a regular looking and size seed?

Having bought
seeds all my life, this wouldn’t be the first time that I’ve been fooled.

难道那是真的吗？那颗大种子并不是特殊的种子。可能是其中一枚外貌平平的种子才有特别

的地方。我务农一辈子，怎么就这么被糊弄了呢。

After
another week had passed, he couldn’t any longer hide his wonderment over the
phenomenon that was developing next to his house. By now the pumpkin, surprising
him in that it was derived from an ordinary seed – not the peculiar larger one
– had the same diameter as one of his tractor wheels. Neighboring farmers and
their families came on over and gawked at the behemoth, still enlarging at an
amazing rate.

时间又过去了一周，他再也不能掩饰他对屋后菜地里的奇怪现象所产生的惊愕了。现在当时看起

来普普通通的南瓜种子——并不是那颗大种子——已经长出有他的拖拉机轮胎那么宽的南瓜了。

附近的农民和他们的家人都来观看这个还在不停长大的庞然大物。

By
the time it grew to the size of his secondhand, golf caddy vehicle, it was on
the local radio news. Isaac was licking his chops, knowing he would be the
winner in the annual local biggest pumpkin contest. His family, since Farmer Mel
Spaeth initiated the contest two decades ago, had never gotten higher than
fourth place. He thought of his deceased parents and knew how finally winning
would make them proud, wherever they were now.

此时那颗南瓜已经长得和他的二手高尔夫球车一样大了，当地的广播开始播报它。艾萨克美滋滋

地等着拿今年南瓜大赛的冠军。自从二十年前农民梅尔·斯帕斯开始这个竞赛之后，艾萨克家还从

没拿到过头三甲呢。他想到已经离世的父母，他们要是知道后该多么自豪啊，不管他们现在在哪。

This
trophy’s going to be for you, Pop.

这个奖杯应该归你，老爹。

“So,
Isaac, old fella, you been messing with pumpkin DNA?” questioned one farmer.

“艾萨克我的老伙计，你是不是搞转基因南瓜了啊？一位农民问道。

Another
queried, “Don’t tell me you ain’t got a special secret fertilizer, you old
fox.”

另一位则说，“别跟我说你没用特别的肥料，你这老狐狸。”

The
wife of yet another farmer whispered to her husband, “Barnes is probably
messing with steroids. The thing’s gotta be unsafe to eat. Maybe it should be
disqualified from our contest.”

另一位农民的老婆则悄悄对她的丈夫说，“巴恩斯肯定是在南瓜里加了类固醇。那东西肯定不是安

全食品。也许南瓜大赛应该将它除名。”

Another
farmer’s wife whispered back at the woman, “It’s the devil’s work, if
you ask me.”

而另一位农妇则对她耳语道，“俺觉着这肯定是魔鬼的杰作。”

Isaac
didn’t provide any answers, not even telling where he had bought the seeds. He
enjoyed keeping his competition guessing about his sudden prize possession.

艾萨克没有回答他们的疑问，甚至都没告诉他们是在哪买的种子。他喜欢让他的竞争对手们想

破脑袋为什么他能如此突然冲向南瓜大赛的冠军。

But
as things turned out, he never did submit the prize pumpkin for competition. Not
when, a group of IU, or Indiana University, students visited, raved at the
humongous form, and agreed to pay a whopping two thousand dollars for it. They
originally offered one thousand, but Isaac knew how to bargain, having sold
produce all his life. He knew the youngsters just had to have it. The
rich fraternity boys had seen it on the news on television. He knew they had
come to his farm set to buy.

可事实是，他没能将南瓜送上大赛。一群来自印第安纳大学的学生来参观了，喋喋不休地讨论着

那个庞然大物，然后同意花两千美元买下它。起初他们打算给一千，但是艾萨克是个讲价能手，

毕竟他卖了一辈子农产品。他知道那群年轻人迫切地它。那个有钱的友爱学生会在电视新闻上

看到了它。他知道这些人一定会来他的农场买这个南瓜。

Soon
enough, Isaac had sold his prize and it rode out of Cope, secured to a flatbed
truck, along IN-44 to Martinville, then southward taking the IN-37S to
Bloomington, where the students’ campus and fraternity house were located.
Passing drivers along the freeway stared at the huge monstrosity. Most, however,
thought it wasn’t a real pumpkin but a plastic construction for a pep rally at
IU just further south, about twenty-five miles away.

不久，艾萨克卖掉了他的大南瓜。他用一辆平板卡车安安稳稳地带着它离开科普，沿着印第安纳

第44号公路向马丁威尔开去，然后又向南沿着印第安纳第37S公路开向布鲁明顿，那个大学的校

园和友爱学生会的房子就在那。一路上的司机都盯着那个庞然大物看。他们还以为那是个塑料

的假南瓜呢，他们以为那是南边二十五英里外印第安纳大学足球赛前游行用的道具。

A
mischievous kid in a passing car shot some BB pellets into it, not that it
caused any obvious damage. The pumpkin flinched, but it wasn’t
perceptible to anyone.

一辆路过车里的淘气鬼用他的BB弹枪打了那个南瓜好几枪。这倒没造成什么伤害，可是那南瓜

却哆嗦了几下，不过却没人看见。

At
first the monstrosity was destined to be placed on the front lawn of the
fraternity house. However, student body pressure convinced the fraternity to be
generous and position it on campus where the whole university community could
admire it. The frat members agreed, but a sign stating “Donated by Delta
Omega” had to be posted next to it. It was a deal easily approved by the
student body government and university administration.

最初那个大南瓜本要被放在友爱学生会房子前的草坪上。然后有些学生团体对学生会施压，好

让他们把南瓜放在校园里，这样全大学的人都能来参观它。友爱学生会只好同意，但是却坚持南瓜旁

边要放一个写着“
由 德 尔塔欧米茄协会捐赠”的牌子。学生社团和校管处很轻松地同意了。

Being
that the wide-open area around Showalter Fountain served as an assembly area
that could accommodate a large crowd of students, the pumpkin was lowered from
the flatbed truck and placed on a flat grassy lawn close by. It also was the
location of the upcoming pep rally.

肖沃尔特喷泉附近那片开阔地可以容纳大群的学生，那个南瓜就从那被卸下了平板车，然后放

在了附近的草坪上。这是过几天赛前游行的必经之路。

The
pumpkin was designated to headline the football pep rally against archrival
Wisconsin. Among the dogwood, elm, and maple trees that made IU distinguished
for having “one of the most beautiful landscaped campuses of American
universities,” now sat what the students nicknamed, “The Great Pumpkin.”

这个南瓜被装饰成了对宿敌威斯康辛队的赛前游行的首要景观。有着萸树、榆树、枫树的印第安

纳大学是“美国最美校园大学之一”，现在学生们又给它取了个昵称，“大南瓜。”

Its rich orange color looked right at home among the many autumn red,
orange, and yellow leaves that graced the array of trees on the beautiful
campus. IU, endowed with large vintage buildings and acres of trees with their
leaves turned golden, is a sight to behold. Between summer and winter it is
truly a traditional, Midwestern, autumn college setting.

南瓜那鲜亮的橙色很搭配着周围那些一路装点着美丽校园的秋天树叶的颜色，红色、橙色和黄

色。印第安纳大学有很多老式建筑，周围的树叶又在秋天变成一片金黄，场面甚是美观。这是夏季

与冬季之间的美国中西部经典的校园景象。

To
everybody’s amazement, even after the pumpkin had been severed from its vine,
it was still expanding in size! It was impossible, yet it was happening.
Professors from the botany department were taking samples from the back surface
(as to not deface its designated frontal view) to study its DNA. In order to do
this, the faculty had to secure written permission from the fraternity boys, as
the pumpkin was their purchased property. And why shouldn’t they give
permission? Maybe the research might discover something important, and that
would make their ala mater(alam mater?) that much more renown and prestigious.

让人惊奇不止的是，那个南瓜虽然被从秧上摘下来了，可是它的体积还是一直在增加！尽管是

不可能的事，可它却发生了。植物学教授们正在从南瓜的后面取样（当然不能从被装饰的前面取

样了）来研究它的DNA。他们从学生会那里获得了批准，因为南瓜是他们的财产。他们当然不会

拒绝教授们了，也许他们的研究会发现重要的结果，这就会使他们的母校更加有名望和声望了。

When
it got as big as a house, farmer Isaac Barnes was called upon and taped for an
interview to be aired on television, answering questions on how he was able to
grow such an amazing specimen. He then revealed that it had come from a seed in
a packet from the Home Depot in Indianapolis. Farmer Barnes told the interviewer
how proud he was to make two thousand dollars after investing only $1.99 in a
pack of seeds. But that didn’t make for exciting news. So, somehow, the media
storyline changed to the story about how farmer Isaac Barnes bought the seeds
from some mysterious pawnshop owned by gypsies, which was hidden in an alley in
the seedy, gritty, low-income part of the city.

当它长到与房子一样大时，农民艾萨卡·巴恩斯被叫来录制电视采访，人们问他是如何栽培出这

么惊人的品种。他终于道出了从“家用物资补给站”买种子的事实。巴恩斯告诉记者他对那1.99美

元的投资让他得到两千美元的回报是多么的自豪。但是人们对这并不感兴趣。所以，电视台照旧

开始添油加醋，说巴恩斯是在某个神秘的吉普赛当铺买到的种子，并且说店主来自城市贫民区

某个脏兮兮的小巷。

A
competing television station instead went with the football story. The IU
fraternity that bought the pumpkin for the school made for a more appealing
angle for this dilemma of the giant pumpkin. The young, handsome college
students beefed up TV ratings in this city that supported their Hoosiers. With
enthusiasm and excitement, the students predicted how their
“Hosiers(Hoosiers?)-Big Daddy” mascot was going to help bury the visiting
Badgers from neighboring Wisconsin. Good looking Vince Adams, president of the
fraternity and obviously coming from money, said on TV how the Wisconsin Badgers
were going to get bashed by their Hoosiers, even if IU was a 7-point underdog in
the football betting lines. He predicted on how the losers were going to be
forced to “eat pumpkin till they threw up.” With Halloween a few days away,
the expansive campus in full bloom with the red, orange and yellow leaves of
autumn as setting, this football story was just made for Midwestern TV. The
Wisconsin-Indiana matchup was always a big game for the region. The new IU
stadium would be sold out. With both teams having the same school colors, all
the seats would be filled with color coordinated red and white.

一家与之竞争的电视台则采访了足球赛的故事。在那印第安纳大学的友爱同学会对出于爱校的购

买行为这个使这个陷入困境巨大南瓜有了更好的声望。那群年轻的、帅气的学生们大大提升了那家

电视台的收视率，因为他们让印第安纳人队占足了光。在热情和激动之下，那群学生预言他们的“印

第安纳大老爹”将会带来好运，把客场来战的威斯康星獾兽队打个落花流水。相貌堂堂的文斯·亚当

斯，友爱学生会的会长，出于金钱的目的告诉电视台威斯康星獾兽队将如何被他们的印第安纳人队

狠狠地斩落马下，尽管他们的队伍是一支在足球界只有7分的哀兵败将。他预言说那些失败者将被

罚“吃那个大南瓜，直到呕吐不止。”万圣节就要到了，壮观的校园长满各种暖色调的树叶，这恰好

为中西部电视台录制节目做好的铺垫。这场威斯康星对印第安纳的大战将是本地一个巨大的看点。

新建的印第安纳大学体育场将座无虚席。由于两队队服的主色调一样，所以所有的座位将会坐满红

白相间的人群。

The night of the anticipated big pep rally had come. Television crews
were there and readied. There was a large bonfire close to the pumpkin. The huge
mass was now embellished with the traditional Jack O’ Lantern eyes and mouth.
It was literally a monumental project. Students of sculpture from the art
department had the honor of performing the task. It was necessary to install a
makeshift scaffold to reach the height were the eyes and mouth needed to be
carved.

赛前游行终于随这一夜来临了。电视台的工作者早已准备好。大南瓜旁边设置了一个巨大的篝

火。大南瓜将被点缀成传统的南瓜灯模样，带着眼睛和嘴巴。这本来是个纪念性的项目。来自艺术

学院的学生们将实施这工作量巨大的活儿。他们不得不搭建一个脚手架来够到足够高的位置来雕

刻南瓜头的眼睛和嘴。

The
giant pumpkin’s expression, towering above the hordes of students that had
come to the rally, looked devilish in the flickering light of the large bonfire.
Now endowed with a face, it almost looked alive. And hungry.

巨大的南瓜高耸在那成群的游行学生之上，下面闪闪的火光使它看起来带着邪恶的面容。被赋

予眼睛和嘴巴之后，它看起来更像活的了。而且它看起来饥饿无比。

It
had now grown to the size of a two-level house! It was so full of flesh that it
seemed to be bulging outwards at the seams. TV camera crews were taking it all
in for national television. The event was a dramatic spectacle of macabre,
nightmarish shouting and almost tribal-like chanting. Because of the national
publicity about the “Giant Pumpkin of IU,” the Indiana-Wisconsin game
replaced the more important match up of Ohio State vs. Penn State on the Big Ten
Conference television network.

现在它已经有两层楼的房子那么大了！它满是南瓜肉的身子鼓涨涨的，仿佛要涨破南瓜的接缝。

电视台的工作人员把它搬上了国家电视台。这次游行有着毛骨悚然的艺术主题，仿佛充满了噩梦

般的呼叫和巫医一样的沉吟。因为国家电视台对“印第安纳巨南瓜”的播报，人们对这场印第安纳对

威斯康星的比赛在“十大联盟”电视台关注度已经远远超过俄亥俄对宾州的比赛了。

Some students, dressed in red sleeved flannel shirts with “Hoosier
Football” glowing in white lettering, used torches to set ablaze what appeared
to be a large badger form made out of wooden branches covered with cardboard and
paper-mâché. The huge circle of students that was around their symbolic
captive roared their consent once the mock mascot of the other team was fully
aflame. The scene reminded some of a pagan ritual in “Lord of the Flies.”

一些学生穿着红色长袖法兰绒衬衫，上面印着发光的白色“印第安纳人足球队”字样。他们用火

炬来点燃一个巨大的披满纸板和纸浆的木制獾兽。那一大圈学生嚷着他们的口号，来把这个用来

讽刺对手的吉祥物完全点燃了。这场景让人想起《蝇王》中提到的异教仪式。

“Burn
the Badgers!” yelled the shapely cheerleaders as they did some somersaults
next to the flame. Eerie elongated shadows raced along the concrete pavement in
unison, remaining attached to the tumbling firm and curvaceous bodies.

“烧死獾队！”身材有型的拉拉队长们喊着，还在火堆附近翻着跟头。怪异的狭长人影伸向混凝土

人行道并窜动着，联结这那些翻滚着的坚实曼妙的身躯。

Suddenly
somebody out in the night crowd shouted above the rest,

突然间人群中有人在这夜色下朝其他人大喊，

“Look,
the pumpkin is moving!” The crowd went silent. How could that be?

“快看啊，那个南瓜在动啊！”人群陷入了寂静。这怎么可能呢？

Only
the crackling sound of the bonfire was audible. The mock badger was now merely a
flaming armature of the assembled kindling. All eyes shifted from the burning
heap to the Jack O’ Lantern freak of nature.

四周静得只剩那篝火的噼啪声。那个被用来取笑的木制獾兽已经烧得只剩带着点点火焰的骨架

了。所有的目光都从它身上移到了那盏硕大的怪异南瓜头上。

A
female student, selected to be interviewed because of her glamour – she looked
like a young Marilyn Monroe, cried out with fear into the TV crew’s
microphone,

一个正在受电视台采访的女生——因为她长得像玛丽莲·梦露——带着恐惧的哭腔对着电视台员

工的麦克风说，

“See?
It’s quickly swelling outwards, like some sort of water balloon! It’s almost
as if, it’s going to b...”

“看哪，它向外正在膨胀，就像个水球一样！看起来它好像，它好像要……”

Before
the shapely blond co-ed in front of the TV camera could finish, the giant
pumpkin BURST. The live TV feed went blank. The camera – as well as the pretty
co-ed – was positioned too close.

没等在这个俊俏的金发女生在摄像器前说，那个巨大的南瓜头爆炸了！直播电视变得一片空白。

因为摄像机——还有那个女生——离南瓜头太近了。

There was a deafening blast and several hundred of the closest were
knocked off their feet by mushy orange stuff. As they squirmed about on the
ground, some moaning in pain, they found themselves covered with soft pumpkin
flesh and seeds. There was no backup camera. People watching TV in their homes
stared at their blank screens before the message of “Sorry, we are having
technical difficulties...” came on the screen.

一声震耳欲聋的爆炸传来，离南瓜头最近的几百人被浓密的橙色汁液喷倒在地。他们在地上蠕

动着，有的痛苦地呻吟着，他们全身都是软软的南瓜肉和南瓜种。由于没有备用摄像机，电视前的

人们则只能看到空白的屏幕上写着“对不起，我们遇到技术故障……”。

For
the next few days, the Bloomington Hospital had no vacant beds. But fortunately,
almost miraculously, nobody was severely injured.

接下来的几天中，布鲁明顿的医院住满了伤员。可是奇迹般的是，居然没有人受重伤。

Wisconsin
ended up winning that year. Eventually nobody remembered the final score. It had
been close, but not enough points were scored by the undermanned Hoosiers. At
least the home team had beaten the Vegas “spread.” The Big Ten Conference
Badgers would end up that year within the top ten in the college football
rankings of the Associated Press. In retrospect, IU was proud to have played
them that close, as there are over one hundred Division I college football teams
across the country.

威斯康星州赢得了那年的比赛。渐渐地，人们忘记了最终比分。比分很接近，但是缺乏人手的印第

安纳人队无法取胜。不过至少主队没有让维加斯那些搞“差价赌注”的得逞。最后獾兽队成了美联社

的大学足球十大联盟的前十名队伍之一。当人们开始回忆时，印第安纳大学队以比分接近为傲，因

为全国有超过一百支甲级队的大学队伍还不如他们呢。

As
for the pumpkin, the media put closure on the mishap and said it was a special,
never-to-be-explained “Trick or Treat,” one that nobody would ever forget.
It remained a mystery of nature, and then grew into Halloween legend for this
Midwestern college town and the surrounding rural communities.

而那个南瓜头呢，媒体们封闭了那个不幸的消息，只是说那是个特别的，不会告诉你起因、经过、

结果的“万圣节恶作剧，”
虽然没有人能把它忘掉。它是大自然中的一件神秘事件，已经成为这个中

西部大学城和附近社区的传奇。

Meanwhile, back at the botany department lab, the researchers found
genetic material they had never seen in a pumpkin. Or in any other plant or
animal known to science.